August 17 2009 Newsletter

The InsaneScouter August 17 2009

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August 17 Updates

I would like to welcome the 172 new subscribers to the InsaneScouter newsletter, I hope you find it helpful. I suggest you all also check out the cool tools under "virtual activities" on the navigation menu.

There are just two weeks left until I pick two contest winners and who ever refered them. If you want your chance at the prizes, all you have to do is spread the word. Just tell your Scouting friends about InsaneScouter and have them become a free member at http://insanescouter.org/users/register.php?rid={user_id}

I have added a box to the homepage that shows the top 10 users names base on number of signups. I encourage each of you to strive to get to the top of this list.

We have added a new way to access the InsaneScouter download / ftp service. When you login as a user, go to the control panel and click on "Access Download Archive Online". A new window will popup, from which you can access all the pow-wow books, clip art, etc. You are also able to upload your own items into the "upload" folder.

Please feel free to link to InsaneScouter from your own Scouting websites, this will help more people find the site, as well as allow us to help more Scouters. You may also have a link from InsaneScoututer to your Scouting website. In your control panel there is a link for "Add A Link To Scout Search". Just fill in the form. Please, do this only once I manually approve all listings to prevent spam and adult sites... which have been a problem in the past.

We are proud to announce the new site search. This search tool does a far better job at finding the content you are interested in. Also when you mouse over the link in search a window will pop up showing you more of that pages content so you can more quickly decided if its what you are looking for before clicking on it.

Lastly, I would like to thank every one on the InsaneScouter team for the hard work and devotion to making InsaneScouter a great Scouting resource.

Preparation: Cub Scouts bring in a different symbol for each statement thenarrator makes before the color guard enters: a religious symbol or emblem,a boy in complete uniform, a Wolf Cub Scout handbook, a craft project, anobect from nature, a U.S. flag, and the pack flag.Cubmaster: I represent the spirit of Baden-Powell—the founder of Scouting.Cub Scout 1: (Cub Scout 1 enters...

Materials: 1 bean bagThe pack sits in a circle with one Cub in the center holding the bean bag. He throws the bagat someone and shouts ‘Earth!’, ‘Water!’, ‘Air!’ or ‘Fire!’. If it is ‘Earth’, the chosen Cub mustreply with the name of an animal, before the center Cub counts to ten. If it is ‘Water’, he mustthink of a...

Draw a simple baseball field (not just diamond) on the ground with chalk. Mark different colored circlesin various areas of the field. Each color would indicate a type of hit: single, double, triple, or home run.To play, the player kneels or stands at home plate and tosses a stone into a circle. If he misses it’s an out.If it lands...

COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: Our pack meeting tonight brought us all together to think aboutnature. We can enjoy the great outdoors but we must think of others who will followus. Wherever you go in the great wide world of nature, try to be a “good” visitor whowill leave the plants and the creatures for others to enjoy after you leave.Cub # 1:...

Cubmaster: This month we have gone back in time to learn about dinosaurs.Paleontologists are men and women who study fossils and helpto recreate what life may have been like millions of years ago. If anyoneever asks you what a dinosaur was, tell them that dinosaurs were allland-dwelling reptiles that walked with their legs straight and their bodiesup off the ground....

Equipment: long piece of rope, at least two ScoutsAll of the Scouts (except the one with the rope) line up in a straight line facing the audience. Then from off stage, the Scout with the rope walks right in front of them pulling the rope behind him. One of the lined-up Scouts asks the Scout with rope, “Why are you...

Preparation: Hold up a box of dominoes.Narrator or Cubmaster: Does everyone know what these are? Right.This is a box of dominoes. Imagine that each one of them is a Cub Scout. Have you ever lined them up on a table so that they are standing on their ends? They stand up straight and tall, but as they go through life,...

NARRATOR: We are coming up on the time of the year when weuse the outdoors more, rather we are hiking the trails of America orjust going to the park. Each of us, as Cub Scouts, owes an allegianceto the outdoors just as we do our flag. Each Cub Scout should knowand understand the outdoor code.Cub # 1. As an American,...

Equipment: Set up two chairs side by side with Scouts sitting on them. Scout 1 acts like he is driving. He starts acting like he is racing through a city and doing crazy stunts. The crazier the better. Scouts 1 and 2 both sway with the motion of the car, make sound effects, and...

Tune: “John Brown’s Body”I like bananas, coconuts, and grapes.I like bananas, coconuts, and grapes.I like bananas, coconuts, and grapes.That’s why they call me;TARZAN OF THE APES.Sing the first part a bit softer each timeshouting TARZAN OF THE APES at end....

Tune- Caisson SongOver hill over dale,We will hit the green wood trail,As the Cub Scouts go hiking along.(Chorus)And it’s Hi, Hi, Hee!The BSA for me,Shout out our name and shout it strong,Where ere we go, we will always know,that the Cub Scouts go hiking along.In and out, all around,You will never see us frown,As the Cub Scouts go hiking along.(Chorus)...

Tune: My Darling ClementineIn a canyon, in a cavern,Looking for a dinosaur,With a brand new pick and shovelI will go and dig some more.O my dino, O my dinoYou are from off the earth,Extinction was your downfallMany years before my birth.I’ll find a bronto, or a stego,Or a T-rex dinosaur.You can see them in the museumHigh upon the second floor.I...

Divide boys into teams of two. Give eachteam a trash bag and 2 blindfolds. Have oneboy in each team remove his shoes and socks.Both boys are blindfolded. Scatter cotton ballsaround on the floor. The object is for one boyto pick up the cotton balls with his toes andplace them in the trash bag that the other boy isholding. This game...

Ingredientslarge flour tortillas cooking spraysaltSpray the tortillas with cooking spray. Use cookie cutters to cut shapes from the tortillas. Arrange the shapes on a baking sheet, lightly sprinkle them with salt. Bake at 350 ° for 5-7 minutes.A fun variation is to pour ¼ c sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon into a gallon-sized zipper bag and shake that up. Then...

Tune - My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean(Chorus)Bring back, bring back,Oh, bring back my space ship to me, to me,Bring back, bring back,Oh bring back my space ship to me.I went for a ride in a space ship,The moon and the planets to see,I went for a ride in a space ship,Now listen what happened to me.(Chorus)I went for a...

This is a “Concentration”-like game. Youwill need several metal lids from juice cans,various stickers or permanent marking pens.Have the Cub Scouts make identical designson pairs of can lids.Mix up the lids, and place them face down(orderly rows tends to make it a bit easier).The first player turns two lids face up, tryingto make a match. Matches are removed fromthe playing...

Divide the group in half and situate themon opposite sides of a volleyball net or ropestrung between two trees. Offer each group anequal amount of dry trash, such as newspaper,tin cans, 2-liter bottles, small cardboard boxes,cleaned out milk cartons, etc. On “Go”, eachteam tries to put their trash over the net. Do notset a time limit for the game, but...

Ingredients:Dino cookie cutters¾ c butter¼ c sugar 2 c flourMix the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl until it turns into a creamy mixture. Addflour and work the dough with your hands. Put it in the refrigerator until the dough is chilled.Take it out of the fridge and flatten out the dough with a rolling pin. Cut the...

Materials: Lots of crumpled computer or copypaper, Trash cansTo play:Divide group into two teams and seat thembehind a throw line. Place the trash cans about10 feet away (distance depends on the motorskills of your boys). On the signal “GO!”Cubs fire their paper“basketballs” at thetrash can goals. Aftera set amount oftime stop the game.Count the numberof “basketballs” ineach trash can. Theteam...

Fill baby food jars with different colors of sand, making layers. To color your own sand fillpaper cups half full of sand. Add water to completely cover sand. Add food coloring for desiredcolor. Stir and then let stand 15 minutes. Pour off water and spoon sand onto paper towels.Spread out sand and allow to dry completely before using....

Materials: Two empty cansTo play:Divide the group into two teams and linethem up relay style behind a start/finish line.Give each team an empty can. The object ofthe game is for the first Cub on each team tokick the can to a turning point then back to thestart/finish line. One at a time, the rest of theteam repeats the action. The...

Divide the players into two teams. Each team is a dinosaur. The dinosaursform with players in single file, all grasping the waist of theperson ahead of them with both hands. On signal, the “head” of bothdinosaurs tries to catch the “tail” of the other dinosaur by tagging himor her. When a tag has been made, the person in the front...

This game is good with lots of boys to play. One player is the dinosaur and another is theknight. The dinosaur and the knight stand in the center and the other players form a circle leavingenough space for a player to pass through. Then the game starts, all players forming thecircle close their eyes, and the knight starts counting to...

Have pans set up with sand. Let the boys step into the sand and carefully remove their foot.Pour Plaster of Paris over the footprint until covered and over flowed a bit. By the end of themeeting the cast should be set enough to remove. Be careful as it won’t be completely set. ...

Similar to hot potato or time bomb, all the players stand in a circle. Oneplayer is handed a water balloon, a real egg, or something else round. Themusic starts and the balloon/egg (a.k.a. dinosaur egg) is passed to the nextboy. No one wants to be left with the dinosaur egg, because that boy is outof the game. Continue playing until...

Divide off into pairs as people arrive. One person is the photographer andone is the camera. The photographer selects a scene that he would like totake a “picture” of and directs (gently) the camera (whose eyes are closed)into position. When the photographer takes a picture (gently tugs on thecamera’s ear) the camera places his hands in front of him, fingers...

Divide the group into two teams and line them up across opposite ends of the room. Each teamcounts off from “one” through the number of players on the team. Put a rag or neckerchief inthe center of the room and call out a number. The player with that number on each team runs tothe center and tries to grab the...

In a wading pool (or in several smaller shallow pans) hide items in sand/dirt that are normally found in theground at an excavation site. Give each person a list of items they need to find and a paint brush. Theyare not to dig but to carefully brush away to discover their find! Once an item is found and identified theyshould...

Players stand in a circle. One person volunteers to be the Farmer and is blindfolded. The Farmerspins around slowly in the circle and then points at someone and names any farm animal. Theperson who is pointed out makes the sound of the animal named, and the Farmer tries to identifywho made the sound. If he is successful, the person named...

This post is about cleanness for cooking and eating. Most of the campouts the Troop I was with did where into middle of the desert where there were no tables, water, bathrooms – thee was nothing but sand and what we brought along. As a result w...

This is the first in a series of blog posts that will talk about the parts of my large outdoor kitchen. In its entirety the kitchen is designed for large group cooking, like when I was quartermaster / cook at our local NYLT course...

I was out the other night with a friend. I brought along my digital SLR camera with me. I decided to practice doing night photography. As I live in Las Vegas the city of lights most of what I tried to do was take pictures of the Vegas Strip. I took 1...

In my last post I talked about how each camp tool is safe when use properly. Its not the tool that is dangerous but rather how the user uses it. Today I would like to make some comments on teaching tool safety to Scouts and other young people. I pers...

This is a topic near and dear to my heart. I guess because of my extensive training when I was in Americorps*NCCC and was the team quartermaster. Just for background my training includes BSA Totin Chit, National Forest Service Trail Crew tools, the C...

What you have to do If you have not done so already, register to receive the InsaneScouter newsletter by becoming a member. http://insanescouter.org/users/register.php When you receive the newsletter forward it o...

Dreams are wonderful, they are what keep us going, give us hope and something to look forward to. They are a big part of what motivates us to go through life day by day. Dreams are a big part of who we are and who we become. After all, we know the on...

Top 10 Rated Pages

Please rate pages yourself, when using the site. all you have to do is login and then click on one of the 5 stars.

Sneek Peak at 2010 GSI Pots! When I saw these two new items I wanted them immediately, but sigh, that won’t happen till early 2010. A girl could dream, no? These are the 2 new items slated for a Feb. release from GSI Outdoors that will be joining the nForm Ultrailght lineu... 17 Aug 2009 | 11:22 am

Name That Council: August 14, 2009 solution We hope that Friday’s council patch challenge wasn’t too much of a bear to figure out. After all, for the first time in Name That Council history, the patch actually had the flag of the council’s home state pictured on it. With those two Great... 17 Aug 2009 | 6:00 am

Summer Camp reflection Back from a week at summer camp. The event of the year when everything comes together, a time to practice the patrol method. To live as a patrol, hanging out with friends, testing skills, learning new ones and just plain having fun.Our week at Ca... 16 Aug 2009 | 9:24 pm

Weekend Ramblings Kirk and I decided to have a weekend of easy hiking and relaxtion on our minds. Heading up from Bellingham, where we made our “base camp” (er…..um….I believe base camp even had a deluxe complimentry breakfast and a King Suite)... 16 Aug 2009 | 7:30 pm

100th Anniversary Plates, Napkins, Cups BSA Supply Group now has available these BSA 100th anniversary plates ($5.99 – $6.99 for 25), napkins ($4.99 – $5.99 for 50), and cups ($9.99 for 50). These would be neat to have for a pack picnic or Blue and Gold Banquet. Plates link, n... 16 Aug 2009 | 1:36 pm

Time is ticking We are half way through the month.. Get your recipes and tips into the Scoutmaster minute for a shot at a fantastic prize.Remember.. you do not have to be a backpacker to enter.. any camping tip or recipe will be welcome.Don't wait till the last minu... 16 Aug 2009 | 11:30 am

No Special Postage Stamp for 100 Years of BSA I hope many of my scouting friends will respond to this note! Thanks. USPS CURRENTLY PLANS TO IGNORE SCOUTING ANNIVERSARY According to the August 24th issue of Linn’s Stamp Weekly, the US Postal Service currently plans to ignore the 100th anniv... 16 Aug 2009 | 9:52 am

It is Round up Time! Coming around the bend is the most exciting time for boys that are about to join the world's oldest youth program. We are about to roundup new scouts and prospective scout leaders through the use of boy talks and open houses. One of the best opportu... 15 Aug 2009 | 9:52 pm

A passion for pets - Glendale News Press A passion for petsGlendale News Press“It's a culmination of all you've learned in Girl Scouts and you apply that to a project,” she said. The La Cañada High School senior has raised funds to ...... 17 Aug 2009 | 11:28 pm

Scouts climb to summit - Danvers Herald Scouts climb to summitDanvers HeraldThe boys cleaned up the sites as a service project, a requirement for the Boy Scouts of America's 50-Miler Award. On the final day the troop members ...... 17 Aug 2009 | 10:38 pm

Girl Scouts - Metrowny.com Girl ScoutsMetrowny.comOn a hot and steamy Saturday, I had a FREE car wash by a Girl Scout troop at Lebros in Amherst. Well; let me tell anyone who needs a sure cure for all the ...... 17 Aug 2009 | 8:28 pm

Scouts In Action

They Saved the Baby from the River! John Fitzgerald, 9, Christian Nanson, 11, and other members of Pack 100 and Troop 100 were swimming in Nebraska's Platte River when Christian spotted a baby floating facedown in the water. Listen as they describe how they saved the baby in a true story of Scouts in Action.... 20 Jun 2008 | 1:57 pm

He saved the boy from the riptide! As Todd Staszak, 15, was bodyboarding at Hatteras, N.C., he heard cries for help. A man was trying to save his son and his son's friend as a powerful riptide pulled the boys away from shore. Listen as Todd and others describe how he rescued the boys in a true story of Scouts in Action.... 29 May 2008 | 9:34 am

He saved his friends from the oncoming car! As Trevor Robinson, 18, and four friends were walking across the parking lot of their school in Carmichael, Calif., a car traveling almost 30 miles an hour rounded a corner and headed straight for them. Listen as Trevor and others describe how he saved his friends' lives in a true story of Scouts in Action.... 23 Apr 2008 | 8:42 am

He saved the boy from drowning! Alex Lambert and David "Junior" Tyree, both 12, and John Buchanan, 13, were swimming. As John began to tire, he panicked and jumped onto Junior's back. Both boys started to go under. Listen as Alex and his mom describe the rescue in a true story of Scouts in Action.... 24 Mar 2008 | 11:08 am

He saved the man from icy waters! Jake Silfies and Matt Mikosky, both 12, were hiking during a winter camping trip on Lake Stillwater, Pa., when Matt's dad fell through the ice. Listen as they describe the rescue in a true story of Scouts in Action.... 25 Feb 2008 | 12:37 pm

Thoughts to Ponder

Two Little Words

It isn't used as often as it should be. How often do you use it? And how often do you say thank you to the persons who are closest to you, your mother and father? How often do you say it to your friends or even strangers when they do something for you?

It's so easy to forget, especially if the Good Turn is done by somebody in your family. Too often we take for granted the many things our parents and other family members do for us. Next week we're going to have a family night for members of our families. Here's a challenge for you. Between now and then, see if you can find some reason to say thank you every day to some member of your family. You may be surprised how they will react.

A simple thank you costs nothing, but it means so much to those who matter most to you. And remember, manners maketh man and can be the difference between you being just another Scout and one who earns himself respect from those around him.

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